Thursday, January 9, 2014

1) Size and Weight. The Nikon D3300 430g, while the Nikon D3200 is 505g. In other words, the Nikon D3300 is 9% lighter than the Nikon D3200. It's also smaller, but I don't have the Star Trek technology to quickly tell you the % number. :-)

2) New Kit Lens. The new kit lens, the Nikon 18-55mm VRII is 30% smaller and 25% lighter, plus it retracts to an even smaller state for storage by pressing a a bottom on the zoom ring. Kind of reminds me a M4/3'd lens.

3) Optional WiFi. It has since been brought to my attention that this is my bad. :-) The Nikon D3200 had optional Wifi too, so don't count this one, just count size and weight as two separate points. :-)

4) Expeed 4. A newer, more current processing engine in the Nikon D3300 than the Nikon D3200 means it's probably a safe bet that the Nikon D3300 has better image quality and high ISO.

5) No Low Pass Filter. Seems to be a trend in Nikon cameras lately, which is a good thing because removing the low pass filter makes for a sharper, more detailed image. Low Pass Filters tend to smudge detail. Kudos to Nikon for continuing the trend in their entry level DSLR!

6) 25,600 High ISO. The Nikon D3300 has a new max high ISO of 25,600 while the Nikon D3200 has 12,800. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not suggesting that the top ISO setting on either camera is usable, but it does likely indicate that the Nikon D3300 is usable at a higher ISO setting than the Nikon D3200, with all else being equal. In other words, if you were comfortable shooting at ISO 1600 on the Nikon D3200 as your highest ISO setting, then you'll probably be ok with ISO 3200 on the Nikon D3300 (or at least a half stop anyway).

So there you have it. Seven reasons to buy the Nikon D3300 OVER the Nikon D3200. Now, the seven reasons may mean nothing to you, and that might mean, for you, saving about $120 by buying the Nikon D3200 is the better choice.

I'm not honestly sure which way I'd go if I was in the market for an entry level Nikon DSLR. Here's the current price difference at BHPhoto at the time of this writing.